Tech billionaire Elon Musk‘s social media platform X, formerly Twitter, was given a legal blow on Thursday when a German court ruled that it had to give researchers access to data on political content immediately as the country prepares for its election in about two weeks.
Newsweek reached out to X via email for comment on Saturday morning.
Why It Matters
Social media platforms like X have been under scrutiny by the European Commission, the main executive body of the European Union (EU), for allegedly failing to help prevent election interference.
X was already accused by the commission in July of allegedly breaching the Digital Services Act (DSA), which came into effect in 2022 to make very large platforms and search engines give researchers access to data to research systemic risks.
Meanwhile, Musk, who is currently cutting down U.S. government agencies on President Donald Trump‘s behalf as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) in order to cut wasteful federal spending and “dismantle” government bureaucracy, has also gotten into German politics, voicing his support for the far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) party on his X platform.
Newsweek reported last month that the administration of Germany’s lower house of parliament, the Bundestag, was investigating whether Musk’s support for the AfD on the platform where he has over 200 million followers could constitute an illegal party donation as campaigning by third parties is considered a party donation under German law.
In late December 2024, Musk published an opinion piece in the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag defending the AfD. Eva Marie Kogel, the paper’s opinion editor, resigned in protest. He also participated in a livestream on X with AfD leader Alice Weidel early last month where he encouraged voters to support the far-right party in Germany’s February elections.
What To Know
On Friday, Politico, which said it saw the Berlin Regional Court’s decision, reported that the court issued its ruling that X must provide researchers with the data on Thursday after the Berlin-based advocacy groups Democracy Reporting International (DRI) and the Society for Civil Rights (GFF) filed a lawsuit earlier this week.
The lawsuit alleged that X prevented the tracking of potential election interference by not giving the advocacy groups access to engagement data such as likes, shares and visibility metrics, according to Politico.
Politico also reported that the court ordered X to pay legal costs and a nearly $6,200 procedural fine.
What People Are Saying
Michael Meyer-Resende, executive director of DRI, said in a statement on Friday: “The language of the law is crystal clear, and we welcome the court’s confirmation of what was written in it: civil society and researchers have the right to analyse electoral debates online.”
He added: “The digital space is not a lawless zone, and I trust that X will grant us access to its data promptly. We study online debates without fear and favour, aiming to shed light on what happens on these platforms.”
Simone Ruf, lawyer and deputy director of the Center for User Rights at GFF, said in a statement on Friday: “This decision is a huge victory for academic freedom and our democracy! We have secured access to crucial research data and are blocking attempts to manipulate elections. It is a strong signal for protecting fundamental rights in the digital age.”
What Happens Next?
German citizens will vote for their new chancellor on February 23.
According to Reuters, a poll released on Tuesday showed Germany’s conservative party with 28 percent of support, the AfD with 20 percent and Chancellor Olaf Scholz’s Social Democrats with 16 percent.
The DRI said in a news release on Friday that the German court said X must give them “unrestricted access” to public data on X until shortly after the election. However, X could try to delay giving such data through legal appeals, according to Politico.
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